Farming and Having Children

That night, a hundred people were married off as grooms.

There were no three betrothal gifts and six rites, nor did either side's parents or family come. Everything was kept simple.

Qi Feng, a royal bastard son, chose a pair of flower-like sisters. Sure enough, the saying proved true: the circles of the high and mighty were indeed a tangled mess.

Murong Yue, the only woman among those with High-grade Spirit Roots, was harder to describe. Yet the Great Sword Sect seemed accustomed to such things and had arranged everything properly.

Everyone received identity plaques and cultivation methods according to their aptitude and potential, and residences were assigned as well.

Under the moonlight, Lin Chang'an and Li Han sat in the small courtyard, staring at each other with the air of two men sharing the same misery.

"Chang'an, your little courtyard is truly enviable."

Li Han spoke with some envy. Though Lin Chang'an only had a Mid-grade Spirit Root, he was an alchemist and still young. Taken together, his potential earned him treatment equal to that of someone with a High-grade Spirit Root.

The courtyard sprawled as wide as a prince's residence, with pavilions, towers, artificial hills, and ponds. There were more than a dozen maids to attend to daily needs and keep the place tidy. It had everything one could want.

Then he thought of his own small courtyard, with only two maids serving him. Li Han could not help feeling sour.

"Enviable?"

Hearing that, Lin Chang'an shot a red-eyed glance at the estates around them, their red lanterns rising beneath the night sky. The two exchanged a look. Wasn't that what was truly enviable?

"I cultivate the Pure Yang Five Elements Cultivation Method. As long as I remain a virgin, the spiritual power I cultivate is fierce and profound. Before I fully master the method, I cannot lose my virginity."

Lin Chang'an shook his head helplessly. "My root bones are Wood among the Five Elements, with Water, Fire, Earth, and Metal as subordinate elements. But none of my Five Elements affinities stand out, so I cultivate the Five Elements Cultivation Method."

Li Han scratched his head awkwardly. "Fellow Daoist Chang'an, I only entered the immortal path through a fortunate coincidence. I cultivate the Evergreen Cultivation Method."

Lin Chang'an was stunned when he heard that. "Then why tonight—"

Suddenly realizing something, with two men standing beneath the night sky, Lin Chang'an's expression changed. He laughed awkwardly. "Fellow Daoist, you and I should rest early."

"Fellow Daoist Chang'an, I merely wish to see the sights of the immortal world, so that this life will not have been lived in vain. I do not wish to leave behind any entanglements here."

Only after Li Han explained did Lin Chang'an secretly breathe a sigh of relief. You gave me quite a scare.

"Fellow Daoist Chang'an, I intend to..."

After hearing him out, Lin Chang'an shook his head and sighed. "The common knowledge of the Cultivation World..."

One was a complete novice in the Cultivation World, while the other was too stifled to sleep. Under the moonlight, the two sat in the pavilion and talked through the entire night.

Half a month later, the youths who had initially clung to hope had all fallen into despair. No one came to ransom them, so they could only resign themselves to joining the Great Sword Sect. Yet Lin Chang'an still remembered that flash of vicious malice in someone's eyes.

However, because these people had joined later, they had missed their chance to choose. Now they could only take whatever they were given. Although the women were all quite pretty, people were like that—only what they chose themselves felt most satisfying.

Most chose the path of marrying wives and having children. It was relatively easier, after all, and the temptation of beauty was difficult to resist at their age.

Those who were resolute, or had other reasons for not having children, could not expect the sect to support idlers. One after another, they began seeking ways to earn Spirit Stones, gathering cultivation resources for themselves and perhaps even enough to buy back their freedom.

One month later.

Of the two youths with High-grade Spirit Roots, one was reportedly ransomed by members of his clan. The other accepted reality and chose the path of having children and farming during the day to earn Spirit Stones.

For someone with a High-grade Spirit Root, the sect directly sent over five women who possessed Spirit Roots... It truly made everyone else green with envy.

No matter how gentle the Great Sword Sect's methods were, it would not invest resources in outsiders like them. Being allotted Spirit Fields and allowed to earn their own cultivation resources was already not bad.

The cultivators who had children were the same. Put bluntly, they were given land to support themselves, but they also had something to look forward to.

For example, if they gave birth to a child with a Spirit Root, their required contribution would be reduced by a certain amount, decreasing further with each additional child. The more children they had, the greater the rewards; the better the child's Spirit Root aptitude, the greater the reward.

Though the Great Sword Sect was small, it had all five organs and six entrails. Magical artifacts, pills, talismans, Spirit Rice, Spirit Vegetables, Beast Meat, and other cultivation and daily necessities were all available.

By early August, they had been here for two months and seemed to have adapted to the place.

That morning, Lin Chang'an walked out of the courtyard and greeted people familiarly. Thanks to his status as an alchemist, none of that brainless, nostrils-in-the-air behavior occurred.

At the beginning of every month, the sect held a Trade Fair.

Outside the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, both sides were bustling. Sect cultivators had set up stalls, as had people like them who were only half-members of the sect. Their goods were laid out on stone tables, creating an atmosphere of harmony.

Lin Chang'an arrived, passed directly by the small stalls, and entered the Spirit Herb Hall within the Hundred Treasures Pavilion. He found the shopkeeper and asked cautiously, as though afraid someone might overhear him.

"Shopkeeper Li, please prepare these medicinal ingredients for me."

The shopkeeper was a shriveled old man past sixty, at the Qi Refining third layer. Upon seeing Lin Chang'an, his aged face immediately bloomed into a smile.

"Alchemist Lin, you have finally come around. In this world, only Spirit Stones are real. Everything else is but passing clouds."

Lin Chang'an rubbed his nose awkwardly. After glancing around and confirming that no one was paying attention, he cupped his hands and said quietly, "Shopkeeper Li speaks wisely. Face or no face, only Spirit Stones are real."

When he spoke that last sentence, Lin Chang'an's expression became even more resolute. This lousy place was not some great sect. So what if he had no shame?

He neither stole nor robbed. He simply sold pills of good quality. What could anyone say about that?

Lin Chang'an smiled at once. "Shopkeeper, what about the price?"

"Hehe, the price is negotiable." Shopkeeper Li's withered claw immediately clasped his hand. The old man's face blossomed like a chrysanthemum, making Lin Chang'an shiver.

"As long as, when the time comes... hehe, Alchemist Lin, you give this old man a few pills, I will only charge ten Spirit Stones."

Black-hearted. That was a steep price for outsiders like them.

Yet hearing that he could get a discount, Lin Chang'an no longer disliked that shriveled claw. Instead, he grinned warmly. "Shopkeeper Li, you are still vigorous in old age, your treasured blade has not grown dull. Rest assured, once it is done, I will spare you a pill to satisfy your craving."

"To hell with you!" Shopkeeper Li laughed and cursed. "You brat really do not seem like a greenhorn of sixteen or seventeen. You are far too slick."

Lin Chang'an was not offended. Instead, he shamelessly grinned. "You are as spirited as a dragon and fierce as a tiger, old sir. Why would you need such a thing..."

Shopkeeper Li had lived for more than sixty years; what kind of person had he not seen? He waved his hand and cursed with a smile. "Go on, go on. This old man will not fall for that. At my age, having children and grandchildren fill the hall is my greatest wish. Give this old man one bottle to try first."

"Shopkeeper Li, friendship is friendship, business is business." When it came to trade, Lin Chang'an would not concede the slightest loss.

"Three pills. Take it or leave it. Otherwise, forget it—I'll buy these medicinal ingredients at full price."

Seeing Lin Chang'an's resolute expression, Shopkeeper Li glared with his tiny eyes. "You brat, you truly are stingy. You won't pluck a single hair, yet you still want to fleece this old man."

"You said it yourself, old sir. In this world, only Spirit Stones are real."

Lin Chang'an spoke with narrowed eyes. In the end, Shopkeeper Li looked like a man who had hunted geese all his life only to be pecked blind by one today. He shook his head. "Fine, fine. Among the newcomers of recent years, you brat are one of a kind. Three pills it is."

"Deal."

The old man and the youth exchanged looks, and both revealed crafty smiles.

You thought you had profited, but neither side had lost out.

In this place, if you did not have children, you still had to create value for yourself. Otherwise, no one would support you for nothing.

As an alchemist, aside from refining the sect's monthly quota of pills, Lin Chang'an could only use his spare time to earn extra Spirit Stones.

Thank you all, fellow Daoists, for your support. Those who plan to stockpile chapters, please read through the final chapter on Tuesday. It concerns whether this book can advance in its recommendation rankings. Thank you.